


Cause When the World Takes Me Away, You are Still the Air That I Breathe

by mcgarrygirl78



Category: Criminal Minds
Genre: Drama, F/M, Humor, Romance, post-episode
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2011-10-20
Updated: 2011-10-20
Packaged: 2017-10-24 19:53:22
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,263
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/267239
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mcgarrygirl78/pseuds/mcgarrygirl78
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>He wanted her from the moment he laid eyes on her and loved her before she even left New Orleans.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Cause When the World Takes Me Away, You are Still the Air That I Breathe

**Author's Note:**

> SPOILERS FOR THE PERFORMER!!! This is the first story I've ever written about this pairing and I have no earthly idea where it came from. It was a welcome change though. JJ has never spoken to me as an adult before so it was an interesting adventure. The title comes from the Belinda Carlisle song, Leave a Light On.

“You want me to quit, don’t you?”

“I never said that.”

“But you're thinking it.”

“I'm not thinking anything. And you know I hate when you do that…I don’t want to be profiled, Jen.”

“I'm not a profiler.” JJ sat up in bed some. “I'm not profiling you; I don’t need to profile you. I just know you.”

Will sighed, sitting down on the bed. He’d been looking out the window at the thunderstorm. He smirked to himself that it was a nice metaphor to what was going on in the house as well. He didn’t want this to escalate, it had no reason to. Anyway, JJ should be asleep.

“I swear on a stack of bibles that I do not want you to quit the BAU.” He told her.

“You don’t have to do that.”

“OK, so what do you want from me?” Will threw his hands up, seemingly in defeat. “First you want me to admit what I'm feeling and when I do you say I don’t have to. I don’t do well with this kind of thing. You know I don’t do well with this kind of thing. I think you paint me into these corners to test my fight or flight reactions.”

“I just want the truth, Will.” JJ reached for his hand. She exhaled when their fingers slid together. “Talk to me.”

“I can't say that I'm fond of the idea of you getting hit on the back of the head with shovels.” He sat down on the bed. “But I know how much you love your job. Even more than that, I know how well you do your job. I've watched you solve cases, console families, and bring calm to chaos. No one in their right mind would ask you to give that up.”

“You gave up your work.” She reasoned.

“Sure, for you and Henry. I’d do anything for you and Henry, Jen. I want to be a family and we couldn’t do that with my living in New Orleans.”

“I just don’t want you to feel like you’ve given up everything and I gave up nothing.”

“Nothing?” Will asked. “You leave us all the time. Do you think I don’t know what that does to you? I'm sure I would be alright if you got another job. But this is your job, and you make the world a better place. That’s why I love you.”

“I thought it was my eyes.” She wrapped her arms around his neck, pulling him into a sweet kiss.

“Oh, you have beautiful eyes l’amour de ma vie (1). You have beautiful eyes, beautiful lips, fantastic hips…”

“William…”

“What? We weren't counting the many ways in which you're beautiful?”

“No, not at the moment.” she smiled. “I just know that you worry.”

“And that’s never gonna stop.” He replied. “It’s just another ingredient in our life together. When you love someone as much as I love you, worry comes with the territory. I just have to remember that you can take care of yourself, and that coming home to me and our son is your primary goal.”

“Absolutely.” JJ nodded. “I love you.”

He kissed her again, brushing a blonde lock behind her ear.

“You need to get some sleep. The doctor said rest for the next couple of days and I'm gonna hold you to that.”

“I'm sure by tomorrow I’ll be ready to leap out of my skin.”

“I don’t have a problem holding you down.” He grinned and his eyes twinkled.

She fell in love with his eyes first. No matter what Will said, his eyes always gave away the real meaning. They could be deep and serious or they could be seductive and playful. JJ loved when they were playful. Those were Henry’s eyes.

“Don’t make me remind you that I can take you down.” She said, laughing. “Pennsylvania Junior Arm Wrestling Champion two years in a row.”

Will laughed too as he slid between their sheets. He wrapped his arms around her; JJ cuddled close. “Point taken; but we will revisit the subject at a later date.”

“I love you, William LaMontagne.”

“It’s pretty easy, isn’t it?”

“Mmm, not always; but that’s my fault not yours.”

“You’re a tough apple, Jen. But that makes you all the more sweet.”

“Corny alert.” JJ giggled.

“You are so bad.”

He started tickling her and they wrestled in the bed. His shirt came off in the struggle and so did her panties. When they wrestled, they liked to play for keeps.

“You OK, cher?” he caressed her face, kissing her nose.

“Yeah.” She nodded.

“I just don’t want…”

“If you don’t want any trouble then you better make love to me.” JJ stroked his naked back. “It’d be pretty unfair to get a girl all excited and not follow through.”

Will grinned, knowing he had every intention of following through. It was kind of hard not to with JJ. He wanted her from the moment he laid eyes on her and loved her before she even left New Orleans. It hadn't been an easy ride, that’s for sure. Sometimes Will was sure that without Henry JJ would’ve ended it already.

It would’ve been for all the wrong reasons but he knew her well enough to know she would’ve done it anyway. As if he needed anymore reason to be thankful for his son. Henry created stability for them both and made JJ not want to run away. At least that’s how Will felt about it.

“You're thinking too hard.” JJ said. “Take a deep breath and focus on what’s directly in front of you.”

“The most beautiful girl in the world is directly in front of me.” He replied.

“And she wants to be focused on.”

JJ brought Will back to her. He had this tendency to think too much and she knew some of that was her fault. He worried sometimes, maybe more than sometimes, that he would lose her. It wouldn’t be the FBI, which was probably what worried the spouses and lovers of other agents. It would be her fear of being loved, her tendency to believe she was stronger on her own.

JJ had been hurt before. She’d been hurt when she should've been loved. It was so difficult to let go and surrender to the feelings in the pit of her belly. Being Will’s lover was easy. Even when she was going back and forth to Louisiana on weekends; it wasn’t a problem.

Having to be something more was a daily struggle. She knew why she was a runner, she mostly knew why, but justifying it didn’t make it any easier for the people involved. He held on, meant what he said. He even gave her space when she needed it. He was so perfect, even when he pushed too much, but the beast hadn't been defeated. Maybe it never would be.

But she did want it to stop being an elephant in the room. They’d been together longer than she’d been with any man, yet it was still there. It was there as he made love to her. It was there as he held her in his arms. It was there as JJ closed the door on another day and wondered what would be behind that door tomorrow.

“I love you too, Jen.” Will whispered into her hair as her body relaxed against his. She’d made it home to them…would live, love and fight another day. To him, that was the only thing that mattered.

***

1\. Love of my life


End file.
